Advertisement

Style on TV, where to find it

Share

This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.

Television takes the spotlight this week at the upfronts in New York City, when most networks will announce which shows live and die. This Sunday, I take a look at the role that style plays in a successful scripted show.

A lot has been written about fashion on Fox’s “Glee,” the CW’s “Gossip Girl” and AMC’s “Mad Men” — and, in truth, many of us tune in to see just what Blair or Joan Joan Holloway (now Joan Harris) and Blair Waldorf are wearing?

Advertisement

Those highly stylized looks won’t work for most of the scripted shows on television these days. But that doesn’t mean there’s nothing stylish to watch. While most outfits in contemporary shows are put together by costume designers who shop off the rack, some of the looks are inspiring enough to try at home. CBS’ “The Good Wife,” for one, features some of the best-dressed career women on television.

And TV’s sexy new period and fantasy costume dramas (“Camelot,” “Game of Thrones,” “The Borgias”) are bringing to the small screen some of the most colorful and creative costumes we’ve seen in years, many built from scratch.

When it comes to reality shows, there’s often more fashion action behind the judges’ desks than on stage. In a separate story, I take a look at America’s new fashion idol, “American Idol” host Steven Tyler.

-- Booth Moore

Advertisement